Piper PA-28-180 N9254J

Summary

On 2 July 2005 at about 18:30 local time, a Piper PA-28-180 registered N9254J was involved in an accident near Yuma, Arizona, United States. 4 people were on board and nobody was injured. The aircraft was substantially damaged. The NTSB has published a probable cause for this accident; it is quoted in full below.

Date

2 July 2005 at 18:30

Classification

Accident

Location

Yuma, Arizona, United States

Nearest airport

Yuma International Airport (YUM)

Coordinates

32.6564, -114.6058

Aircraft

Piper PA-28-180

Registration

N9254J

Category

Airplane

Engines

1

Operator

Not recorded

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Personal

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Yuma → Unknown

Aircraft damage

Substantial

Weather

VMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

LAX05LA223

Nobody was injured.

the pilot's misjudged distance and altitude, which resulted in an undershoot and collision with a airport boundary fence short of the runway. A factor in the accident was the pilot's lack of familiarity flying the airplane at a high gross weight with a center of gravity near the forward limit, which would have affected the elevator control forces and the amount of nose up elevator available.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record. This site does not paraphrase or interpret it.

Read the full NTSB narrative

The airplane collided with an airport perimeter fence short of the runway during landing and nosed over. While on final approach with the flaps fully extended and the throttle at 1,700 rpm, the airplane began descending rapidly. The pilot retracted the flaps 10 degrees and applied full power. The airplane continued to descend until it struck the airport perimeter fence and nosed over. The pilot reported that this was his first flight with three passengers on board the airplane. Weight and balance calculations showed that upon takeoff, the airplane exceeded its forward center of gravity limit by 1 inch and the gross weight was 2,347.42 pounds. During landing, the calculated center of gravity was near its forward limit, but 0.3 inches within the weight and balance envelope. The gross weight during landing was 2,257.42 pounds. The maximum gross weight for the airplane was 2,400 pounds.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.